Thursday, May 1, 2008

Reviewing the review of DC Universe #0

Matt Brady's Newsarama site is a wonderful resource for comics-related news and information, and he enthusiastically loves his work (and the hobby). I truly tip my hat to him.

But Matt's description of this weeks DC Universe #0 as "a brilliant trailer, a sharply conceived bit of pop candy that’s designed to stoke the fires of fandom" left me all alone out here - - - I guess. After back-to-back year long weekly series from DC, and dozens of spin-off series that tied into the whole "52"/ "Countdown" mess, AND with even more to come; I am beyond burned out on all things DCU at the moment.

You see, Matt goes on to say that DCU #0 is "essentially a collection of glimpses at the various and sundry stories that piggy-back off of Final Crisis" and that it's "absolutely ground-level stuff. It’s a bull-by-the-horns admission that while decades of continuity can be confusing, here’s what you need to get right into the story. And it works."

Really?

Confusing glimpses do not a story make .... even at 50 cents. Yeah, it's a great deal all right, and I bought it, but Free Comic Book Day is coming up in three days, folks. For no more than DC Universe #0 was, I can't help but wonder why DC just didn't make this their FCBD offering. A glorified trailer for more ring-around-the-rosy-pablum-to-come would seemingly have fit the bill for that fan-oriented event.

I'm honestly trying not to be a nitpicker here, but I have grown tired of the marketing machine of the the "Big Two" (DC & Marvel) endlessly spinning out such fare for the willing gerbils who simply don't mind spinning pointlessly around in a cage.

As for the media spoiled reveal at the end of the thing, well all I can say is welcome back Barry. I hope that you can stick around this time.

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How it all began ....

In 1933, publishers at Eastern Color Press, intent to make better use of their printing equipment (which frequently sat idle between jobs), came up with the idea of printing an 8-page comic section that could be folded down from the large broadsheet to a smaller 9-inch by 12-inch format. The result was the first modern comic book. Containing reprints of newspaper comic strips, this experimental comic book titled "Funnies On Parade" was given away for free. It proved so popular that the following year Eastern published "Famous Funnies" and took the bold step of selling the comic for ten cents through chain stores. The enterprise was a smashing success and Eastern began churning out numerous reprints on a monthly basis. Other publishers, eager to get in on the profits, jumped on the bandwagon and the comic book industry was born!